Geocoding assigns geographic codes or coordinates (e.g., longitude and latitude) to map or locate features, such as street addresses. Once the mapped features are assigned geographic coordinates, the features may be mapped and entered into a geographic information system (GIS). Mapping applications may utilize the GIS to obtain the geographic coordinates and display a symbol (e.g., star, push-pin) on a computer-generated map that corresponds to a location for the map feature.
The placement of the symbol on the computer-generated map is only as accurate as the geographic codes or coordinates assigned by a geocoding technique (i.e., localization technique). Current localization techniques employ address interpolation to determine coordinates for street addresses within a street segment. Address interpolation assumes that addresses along the street segment are evenly distributed. When addresses are not evenly distributed, incorrect coordinates are assigned to the addresses.
Current localization techniques that utilize address interpolation also fail in other situations. One situation where current localization techniques fail occurs when an address is located within a larger building, such as a mall or a multi-stored complex. Because the localization techniques produce a point for each address, an address is not accurately handled if the address is distributed along the length of a segment, such as an address for a shopping mall. For example, the symbol for a store at one end of the shopping mall may be located on the computer-generated map at the opposite end of the shopping mall. Another situation where current localization techniques fail occurs when addresses are on multi-level streets.
As one can see, current localization techniques that utilize address interpolation are neither ideal nor precise.